User:Cund0021/sandbox

List of Wikipedia articles with MLA citations
Siren (mythology)


 * "Siren (mythology)." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 22 Sep. 2014. Web. 23 Sep. 2014.

Salem witch trials


 * "Salem witch trials." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 21 Sep. 2014. Web. 23 Sep. 2014.

Catherine the Great


 * "Catherine the Great." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 18 Sep. 2014. Web. 23 Sep. 2014.

Other Encyclopedia articles with MLA citations

 * "Siren." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Sep. 2014.


 * "Catherine II." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Sep. 2014.


 * "Salem witch trials." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Sep. 2014.

Thoughts
For this assignment I wanted to choose three potential topics that I would genuinely be interested in reading. I truly find each of my topics fascinating. I have a love for myths, legends and fairy tales. I often research different mythical creatures on my own time. Being named after a famous mermaid, sea creatures are naturally my favourite. I initially chose Selkie as the topic for my first article. Unfortunately I could not find any other sources on this Scottish and Irish mythical creature so I then changed my first article topic to the much more popular Siren. My second article The Salem Witch Trials I chose because not only is it an interesting part of history, but also fairly easy to find different sources on. On more than one occasion while in bookstores and libraries I have browsed through non-fiction books on The Salem Witch Trials. For the purpose of this research report I would love the opportunity to practice citing and researching physical texts. Catherine the Great is a figure I have recently become intrigued with. I had the opportunity to watch a documentary on her life and enjoyed it very much. I would love to research further into her reign. I am sure I won't have a difficult time finding further sources on this topic either.

For each Wikipedia article I chose I also found an article on the same topic through Encyclopedia Britannica. I found that in most cases Wikipedia in comparison to Encyclopedia Britannica had much more information. Encyclopedia Britannica's article on Siren's only described the Greek mythological version of this creature. I did not know until now, that the Greek version of a siren was in fact half bird half woman. I always assumed they were creatures of the water and not of the air. After reading further into Siren's via Wikipedia I found the information provided was very similar just drawn out. Encyclopedia Britannica is definitely clear and concise. I was especially surprised by the lack of information on The Salem Witch Trials. The Salem Witch Trials is a very popular and disturbing time in American history. At this point into my research I realized it may have been a good idea to have used other reference sources. I did however, enjoy the article spotlight provided at the bottom of each article. In this instance Encyclopedia Britannica provided a relevant link to "300 Women Who Changed The World.". I look forward to possibly using this link for the second half of my assignment. I did have to remind myself that having more information didn't necessarily mean that Wikipedia was a more reputable source. The articles on Catherine the Great I found were both accurate but again Encyclopedia Britannica was definitely more condensed. I really appreciated the many images Wikipedia provides throughout their articles. Particularly for Catherine the Great as I have a love for 18th century art. For the second half of this assignment I plan on using a plethora of different sources and am sure I won't be scarce on information.

Article Summaries
Wikipedia's article on Catherine the Great begins by summarizing the most necessary facts. The introductory paragraph covers everything from her date of birth and the major events that occur until her date of death. I noted much emphasis on the Golden Age. It was evident and consistent throughout the text that Catherine's time spent as ruler of Russia was great and prosperous.Catherine's reign was the longest female reign over Russia, therefore this Wikipedia article is a lengthy one. It is emphasized throughout the text that Catherine was a very enlightened, educated and cultured woman. There is significant text dedicated to Catherine's love for Arts and Culture. The article states that the collection at the Hermitage Museum began as Catherine's personal collection. The article also notes the she was very passionate about introducing a more european style of education to Russia. The article concludes with a small section listing the different titles Catherine took throughout her life, a gallery of portraits as well as an ancestral tree. See Also's, External Link's and Further Reading's are also provided.

Encyclopedia Britannica's approach is thorough and simple. The text is divided into six sections, each section covering a broad amount of information. Although the full article is spread out over four separate pages it isn't too lengthy. It is evident throughout the article that Catherine was a very passionate woman "she touched on everything, not always happily but always passionately". in regards to both her reign and her personal life. The article concludes with an assessment which sums up Catherine's accomplishments, achievements as well as the many opinions on her character.

Comparison
Encyclopedia Britannica's article is divided into 6 sections on 4 pages. Wikipedia's article is separated into 13 sections on only one page. While both articles include the same facts and summaries the Wikipedia article is much more detailed. Within the 13 sections are 28 sub sections. The article is sporadic, but more or less chronological, with a few leaps back and forth in time.

In Wikipedia's article there is much more background given as to Catherine's early life and of her family. The article describes Catherine's mother as an abusive and fame hungry woman, who was to an extent a driving force behind Catherine's engagement to Peter III. Encyclopedia Britannica briefly mentions Catherine's mother, only to explain her relation to the dukes of Holstein.

Encyclopedia Britannica's article is very clear and concise, this allows for a much more pleasant research and reading experience. The assessment portion on Encyclopedia Britannica is an excellent summary of the life of Catherine the Great, it is similar to, but much lengthier than the introductory paragraph in Wikipedia's article.

It is difficult to find any factual errors throughout the text of both articles. This is expected of Encyclopedia Britannica and surprising for Wikipedia. Especially considering their being 2,258 distinct authors on WIkipedia's page alone. Both articles place most the focus on Catherine the Great Successes. However in Wikipedia's "Attitudes towards Catherine" it is states that "[T]he peasants were discontented because of many other factors, as well, including plague, crop failure, and epidemics, including a major epidemic in 1771. The nobles were also imposing a stricter rule than ever, reducing the land of each serf and restricting their freedoms further beginning around 1767[.]" This observation is summarized by Encyclopedia Britannica by the short statement "[T]hus, 95 percent of the Russian people did not in any way benefit directly from the achievements of Catherine’s reign[.]"

References, Contributors and Further Reading
There are many references provided by Wikipedia, one being a Genealogical database by Herbert Stoyan Upon further investigation the link provided a very basic database web page. The information seemed jumbled and the authoritative source unclear. There was a chat to Stoyan link provided but no evident information on Stoyan as an authority on the topic.

As mentioned in my comparison Wikipedia's article's accuracy is surprising considering the large number of distinct contributors. The user Ghirlandajo holds the top number of edits on this page. Ghirlandajo's user page is lengthy with his many contributions to Wikipedia. Ghirlandajo is also the recipient of multiple WIkipedia stars and awards. The validity of these awards is uncertain as they seem to have been awarded from other users and not significant authorities.

Encyclopedia Britannica provides a short bibliography with primary sources as well as other works about Catherine and her reign. Many biographical works were used as references for this article, one being V.A. Bilbassov, Geschichte Katharina II, 3 vol. this work is considered the most important to date work on Catherine the Great, the last volume of which had been banned in Russia by the Tsarist Regime.

Zoe Oldenburg-Idalie is the primary contributor on this article, a short summary of her qualifications is provided. Oldenburg-Idalie is the author "Catherine de Russie" a biographical work on the life of Catherine the Great. There are four secondary individual contributors as well as the editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. The number of contributors to Encyclopedia Britannica's article is minuscule in comparison to that of Wikipedia's. Another indication that Encyclopedia Britannica's article may be of greater legitimacy.

Assessment
Both articles have substance and are in essence, good. Wikipedia is by far the more comprehensive of the two articles, this is expected when considering the amount of distinct contributors. Wikipedia's article has also been listed as a level 3 vital article. Vital articles in Wikipedia are the articles of highest quality and importance. The vital classification of this article explains the accuracy found throughout.

It is clear that Encyclopedia Britannica's article is the more legitimate of the two. The length, simplicity and evident validity make it the source of preference. This is not to say that Wikipedia's article is not of value. The abundance of information provided is an excellent starting point for anyone beginning their research on Catherine the Great. Although, the article should serve as just that, a starting point and nothing else.

Encyclopedia Britannica's assessment portion of their article is also a fantastic starting point for someone beginning research. Perhaps it would serve better in the beginning of the article and not on the last page. Encyclopedia Britannica also makes the last updated date very clear and visible for anyone reading the article. In this case the last updated date was 04-08-2014. This indicates that the article is well maintained and that Encyclopedia Britannica is an up to date and accurate source.

Additional Resources

 * "Catherine The Great." Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia (2014): 1p. 1. Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.


 * Harrison, Kathryn. "Catherine The Great: Catherine The Great: Portrait Of A Woman." Biography 1 (2012): 206. Literature Resource Center. Web. 1 Nov. 2014.


 * Catherine The Great: First She Read, Then She Ruled. n.p.: National Public Radio, 2011. Literature Resource Center. Web. 1 Nov. 2014.


 * [ETH][ETH][degrees]N[ETH][micro][ETH][sup.2][ETH][degrees], [ETH][ETH]1. "'To Know Oneself, To Know Life...': Mores In Catherine The Great's Memoirs." Russian Literature 1-4 (2014): 511. Academic OneFile. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.


 * Roudik, Peter. "The Nakaz of Catherine the Great: Collected Texts." International Journal of Legal Information 2013: General OneFile. Web. 1 Nov. 2014.


 * Tuohy, Thomas. "'Houghton Revisited: The Walpole Masterpieces From Catherine The Great's Hermitage'." British Art Journal 1 (2013): 114. Academic OneFile. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.


 * "Catherine the Great." The New Yorker 2011: Literature Resource Center. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.


 * Catherine II, The Great (1729–1796 C.E.). n.p.: 2013. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.


 * Hilburgh, Adam W. "Catherine The Great: A Case For Operational Art." Journal Of Slavic Military Studies 27.2 (2014): 283-295. Academic Search Complete. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.


 * Alexander, John T. "Catherine The Great: Portrait Of A Woman." Slavic Review 1 (2013): Academic OneFile. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.